NEW YORK - 1975. Discos have opened in old warehouses, steak restaurants and unused hotel ballrooms. Any place you could stick a ceiling full of flashing, coloured lights, a mirrored ball, two turntables, a battery of speakers, a mixer and a DJ. In a recession economy they’re a bargain both for the club owner (who has few expenses after their initial setup investment and an average $50 a night salary to the DJ) – and the patrons, who can dance all night long for the fraction of the cost of a concert ticket. Disco music has evolved from the hard-edged brassy style records of the 60s – Primarily Motown and James Brown – to the more complex, polished and sweet sounds of the 70s.
The wizard technicians that stood in the raised booths across the world were the underground stars of the 70's discotheque boom.
No longer just human jukeboxes, discotheque DJs talked about creating ‘total evenings’ and turning the night into a ‘whole big song.’ Similar to the hairstyles at the time, Disco DJs were emerging as the new pop professionals, holding down the up-from-the-ranks glamour jobs of the moment.
But what made a great DJ back then and is this still true today?
The best DJ’s are underground stars, discovering previously ignored albums, foreign imports, album cuts and obscure singles with the power to make the crowd scream, and play them overlapping each other, nonstop so you can dance until you drop. To conjure up this vibrant volatile aural landscape the DJ has to be part artist, part technician, part crowd psychologist. Some would say totally mad! You have to know your records inside out: The intros, the fades, the breaks, the changes. The intimate knowledge allows you to weave records into record, making one seamless tapestry. Like any artist, a talented DJ develops an individual style. You could be known for having a cool, loose sound or be known for having a harder, more abrasive sound. Watch 5 free classes from Sherelle's 'Build High Energy DJ Mixes‘ course’.
No matter which direction you go, You should always stamp the music with your personal taste and be your authentic self. Learn the art of vinyl DJ-ing from Sally C – one of the most exciting artists on the scene.
To be a DJ is to be a tastemaker, you are being trusted with the night to provide the vibes. You have to read a room and select the right tracks – Pioneer DJ course by Yousef (Circus) – and have a subtle, sure and spontaneous understanding of the crowd. Even being removed from the crowd, being absorbed by the next blend and switching of dials on the decks the DJ has to be simultaneously on the dancefloor, in the midst of the crowd, anticipating its mood at the same time channelling it. It isn’t a matter of simply playing a well known track – anyone can do that. The DJ must sense the moment when it will have the greatest impact, when the crowd wants it the most and when they least expect it; when the crowd bursts into delirious screams on hearing the first 3 notes. The DJ has to know how long to run them, when to ease up and smooth out, when to hit a peak and keep pushing or when to slip into something new so they’ll love it and not clear the floor. It’s an intuitive science.
